Less than a week into starting my career, I was the project architect for the renovation of a building in the Oldtown district of Lansing. The building is in a historic district, but had long lost its charm. Through painstaking research of the building next door (including riding a scissor lift to the roofline to etch the cornice detail), I was able to produce historically accurate drawings to renovate the facade. Careful negotiation with the city and exceeding minimum codes led to obtaining a variance to leave a narrow door and stairwell intact while also using a ships ladder for access to the apartments' loft space. The rear of the building was modernized to maximize views of a river.